Well, E3 2008 is over, and I would like to give a big thanks to the Gamespot staff for all the coverage. This, being my second E3, was great fun, not to mention informational. Thanks to you, E3 2008, I anticipate I might be a bit strapped for cash this fall.

But speaking of all the games coming out this fall, after seeing previews at E3, I'm definitely excited for a few games, including Fallout 3, Far Cry 2, and Gears 2. Fallout 3 looks like a great RPG for me - one that includes first-person-shooter elements. I really liked STALKER: Shadow of Chernobyl because of the setting and story, and I guess one could say that Fallout 3 is pretty similar. Both involve lots of radiation, mutants, nuclear accidents... sounds like fun. But the story for Fallout 3 interests me, and having over 100 hours of gameplay and 50 weapons isn't too shabby either. Far Cry 2 is looking decent too: an open world shooter where you can do pretty much whatever you want, whenever you want. With that said, I'm looking forward to Gears of War 2, well, because it's Gears of War. I didn't necessarily like the multiplayer in the first game, but the story was one of the most addicting and immersive video game stories I've ever played. So, although I don't like the Gears multiplayer formula, the updated graphics, new weapons, and more of the Gears storyline is just too much to miss. As for emblems, I got the E3 Outlaw for seeing all three days of Gamespot's live show, and just the Microsoft conference emblem due to work conflicts. Who doesn't like shiny new emblems?

To wrap this blog up, before the summer is over, I still need to complete BioShock again for "Brass Balls," I need to replay Mass Effect, and need to finish up The Orange Box and GTA IV. I also need to submit my review for Wii Sports and Bad Company, so that should be coming soon as well. Right now, I'm heading up north for the weekend, so I'll be gone until next Monday. Until then, take care, and don't forget to comment.

So, after carefully considering the options presented in last blog, I decided to get the Xbox 360 Arcade. With over 40 Xbox 360 games, an HD Drive, and all the necessary cables, the Arcade was the most cost efficient option. If I bought a PS3, I'd be spending double the money, and I still haven't even gotten to the games. MGS4 might be good, but I think I need more than that to justify a purchase of a PS3.

Anyways, now with the purchase of the 360 Arcade, I get some new Xbox Live Arcade games, a new wireless controller, and a bigger memory card to store my gamerprofile and saved games for when I go to friend's houses. But the biggest improvement with the Arcade is HDMI. Before, I had an Xbox 360 Core launch system. That means that there was no HDMI support. But the new Arcade, on the other hand does have HDMI support. I found a HDMI cable in my room, hooked things up, and I have to say... I've never seen a game so crystal clear in my life - things look great. The only problem I'm facing is an unusually long time for textures to "pop-in" on games such as BioShock. If anyone knows why this is happening, please let me know.

So yesterday, the plan was to pick up the Arcade and Battlefield: Bad Company on my way home from work. As you know, I've been looking forward to that game for awhile now, and was looking forward to picking it up right away. Well too bad for me, it seems like no store in my area has Battlefield until... like the end of the week. I can understand that it might take a few days for stores to receive their shipments and possibly sell the game Tuesday or Wednesday, but I have to say, I was disappointed when I went to Target, and they didn't even know what Battlefield: Bad Company is. Blockbuster doesn't sell the game until June 27th, and a surly Best Buy salesman assured me that I was wrong and the new Battlefield game doesn't come out until the 24th, so they won't get their shipments of the game for a few more days. I'll try to find it again tonight... wish me luck.

To update everyone on my games played: I've still been trying to get the Brass Balls achievement in BioShock (I'm currently inventing the Lazarus Vector), and I've actually been playing some more Halo 3 multiplayer, which looks very good in HDMI, I may add. I also have been slowly but surely progressing in GTA IV, and I'm around 60% done even though Gamespot's guide tells me that I have less than one third of the missions to go. Hopefully I should be playing Bad Company soon, and then after that Mass Effect.

So I was in Best Buy today, looking to possibly buy an Xbox 360 Arcade. If you didn't know, my 360 is still having problems (freezing, RROD on and off), and being as impatient as I am, I figured that I'm not going to be able to go for a month (especially in the summer) without my beloved 360 while it was in repair. So I was considering buying an Arcade because I already have a HD, cables, controllers, etc., and I could therefore save some money. As I was strolling trough, I saw the PS3 display, and thought: why not? I mean, instead of buying another 360, I could buy a PS3 to pacify me until my 360 comes back, and then when it does, I could have the choice of using either system, instead of having two 360's. I was just about to pick up a PS3 and check out... then I saw the price tag. I'm not a cheap guy, but right now, $399 (at a minimum) is much too much for me to spend on a new gaming system. That doesn't include tax, and the fact that I don't have any games to play. I'd love to buy a PS3, but right now, I think it would be better to spend the money on games for the systems I have. Now, however, I'm in a tough situation. Should I spend a minimal amount of money, and get another 360 (the Arcade version) for $275 dollars, for which I already have over 40 games for? Or should I just wait it out while my 360 is in repair, and not play any video games for almost a month? Is it worth it for me to get a PS3 now, with a very small number of exclusive games out? I honestly can't decide.

Anyways, when my 360 is working, I've been trying to finish the Brass Balls achievement on BioShock, and been thoroughly enjoying it. I've beat the game five times, and the sixth is just as good as the first. I love this game because it really feels like you're in Rapture - the atmosphere is amazing. Between sessions down in Rapture, I've been playing the Battlefield: Bad Company demo with mixed emotions. The graphics are great, but (multiplayer) gameplay has some problems that need to be fixed before the full game comes out. First and foremost - the vehicles are very overpowered and unbalanced. Basically, if you want to get a large number of points to level up quick, you pretty much need to be in a tank or a helicopter. The other thing I don't like about the game so far is that every player has so much health - it takes a very long time to get a kill. Maybe I'm just used to CoD4, where a few hits knock you out. But in the new Battlefield, it seems you have to unload a whole clip into someone just to take them out. All in all though, I'm looking forward to the full game when it comes out on the 23rd.

I also feel obligated to post a little blurb for my union here. We deal with the Xbox 360 and it's achievement system, and were always willing to help anyone out with achievements, not to mention that were a bit off topic sometimes. We have 300 users, over 115,000 views, and we recieve over 300 views a day. If you ever need some achievement help, want to talk about the 360, or just want to have a bit of posting fun, feel free to drop in here.

You knew this one was coming, didn't you?

Unfortunately, exams are here, so I won't be on Gamespot as much until next Tuesday, my last school day. After that, I'm home free!

Anyways, since ImageShack was messed up this morning, and my images got deleted, I decided to crack open GIMP and get to work. As you can tell, my new theme is very plain, but that's the way I like it. Minimalistic, eh? In other news: I finally got my hands on a Wii last week, and I'm enjoying it. Brawl is a great game, especially online with friends, but for the hardcore games, I'll be sticking to my Xbox 360. I've also reached level thirty after two and a quarter years on Gamespot. Here's to thirty more!

I should probably get back to studying now. Those essays aren't going to write themselves.

The good news: my copy of Grand Theft Auto 4 just arrived. The bad news? My Xbox 360 is still red ringed. I'm really itching to play this game, especially with all the great reviews that I've seen. It doesn't help that I have the game right in front of me.

I've tried all the tricks to get my 360 working again - the towel trick, squeeze trick, hold trick, clamp trick etc. The squeeze trick eliminated the RRoD, but after I played GTA for a few minutes, my console froze and I got the RRoD again. All I've seen so far is the opening scene, and Roman's "mansion." The suspense!